Introduction

A near-death experience in a car; running from tear gas at a Vietnam War rally; a year in India learning side-by-side the country's “untouchables;” the highs and lows of living on a rural Pennsylvania commune ... and all before Fiona's 13th birthday. Set during one of the most politically divisive eras in American history, Thread for Pearls is a coming-of-age tale that takes us on a young heroine's journey to faith and freedom amidst a turbulent family dynamic. It's a story of resilient hope that questions whether it's the events of our lives that define us, or the thread on which we choose to string them.

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Excerpt

What a strange and sudden stillness. Full stop in midtown Manhattan, one lovely fall day in 1963. Over the car radio, Skeeter Davis was still singing, asking why the sun kept shining, why the sea rushed to the shore. Wondering, “Don’t they know it’s the end of the world?”

It all happened so fast. Eighteen-month-old Fiona had shaken her special pearl rattle a little too playfully, and it had fallen at her mother’s feet near the accelerator. Peggy had reached for it, looking down for a moment to see where it was. What happened next? Hard to tell. The next thing she knew… BAM!... her front bumper crumpled as it met the car in front of her. BANG!... the truck behind them had plowed into them. Hard. Between the jolts, Fiona had gone flying into the dashboard. And then came that eerie stillness.

Peggy snapped back into the moment and started scrambling at the floor for the pearls from the rattle. Maybe she could put it back together again. Fix things. But every time she grabbed at them, they’d roll away from her. One had been crushed into powder. This wasn’t working.

Slowly, she began to hear the honking of the cars, from behind. “Move it, lady!” Still shaking, Peggy put the car in gear, and it limped to the side of the road. She looked over at Fiona, strangely quiet where she lay in the seat, and noticed the purplish walnut emerging on her baby’s head. “Wake up, honey.” Peggy didn’t yet know it, but when Fiona had flown into the dashboard, she’d fractured her tiny skull; one small fragment was lodged dangerously close to the part of her brain that controlled her coordination.

“What do I do? What do I do?” she whispered, her heart pounding and her own head beginning to hurt. “I've got to get out of here, got to get her home and to a phone. I need to call someone. What will I even say?” Completely undone, Peggy started to think back on what had just happened. Her mind raced. view abbreviated excerpt only...

Discussion Questions

Thread for Pearls is set during a turbulent time in American history. How do you think the story would change if it were set in 2019? What would be different, and what would stay the same?

How is Fiona impacted by her turbulent family dynamics? Which character(s) have the biggest impact on her life and the decisions she makes?

What meaning do you find in the title of the book, Thread for Pearls?

Weblinks

»	Official website for the book
»	Publisher's Book Info
»	Book Review from Compulsive Reader
»	Book Review from Midwest Book Review

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